1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the protection of optical discs, and more particularly to resetting protection states for optical discs.
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumers are relying more and more on computers in today""s marketplace. As consumers increase their reliance on computers, they are increasingly demanding storage media having greater storage capabilities. In response to these demands, retailers have started manufacturing optical discs such as rewritable compact discs (CD-RW) that have increased storage capacity in comparison to other storage media. Optical discs store information on tracks that spiral around the center of the disc. The spiral contains sectors to which data is written and stored. After data is written to the optical disc, typically there is a need for protecting the information written to the disc.
The states of protection prevent the unauthorized alteration of data written to the optical disc. This includes preventing an unauthorized user from reading files stored on the optical disc and preventing an unauthorized user from writing additional files to the disc. Currently, protection states are limited to a hard write protect state. The hard write protect state prevents a user from writing additional data to an optical disc. Once the hard write protect state is engaged, all users are prevented from altering files stored on the optical disc. Nonetheless, this is undesirable because it severely limits the usability of an optical disc since a user is no longer able to store additional data to the optical disc. Also, with present protection state applications for optical discs, a user is only able to engage the protection state after the user is done using the disc.
Typically, as a user backs up files to an optical disc, the user writes files to the optical disc and engages a protection state after the user has completed writing data to the optical disc. Under this scheme, a user may not protect the optical disc immediately. For example, a user may be writing back-up files to an optical disc over a course of days. As such, the files remain unprotected during the days while the user continues to write additional data to the optical disc. Thus, a second user may access the optical disc and alter data written to the back-up disc.
This presents further problems to users connected over a network. A user writing files to an optical disc which is connected to a network may not protect the data as the user is writing it to an optical disc. As such, other users connected to the network may access the optical disc through the network and alter data stored on the optical disc until the user writing files protects the disc, which will not occur until the user is done writing data to the disc.
In addition, the present protection states do not allow a user to change the protection states of the optical disc. Once the hard write protect state is set, a user may not reset the protection state to a non-hard write protect state. Thus, the optical disc may no longer be written to and files contained on the optical disc may not be altered.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a method to write protect optical discs as a user is writing data to the optical disc. This new method should allow for different levels of protection on the optical disc and allow the user to reset the states of protection as the user deems necessary.
Broadly speaking, the present invention fills these needs by providing a method for setting the protection states of optical discs. It should be appreciated that the present invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including as a process, an apparatus, a system, a device, or a method. Several inventive embodiments of the present invention are described below.
In one embodiment, a method for setting protection states of an optical disc media is disclosed. The method includes initially setting a first protection state, then a second protection state and then a third protection state for the optical disc media. The second protection state is configured to replace the first protection state. The third protection state is configured to replace the second configuration state once the second protection state replaces the first protection state. The method also includes reverting from the third protection state back to the first protection state where the first protection state is configured to replace the third protection state. When the method reverts back to the first protection state, the second protection state is skipped.
In another embodiment, a method for protecting data of an optical disc media is disclosed. The method includes formatting the optical disc media where the formatting is configured to set a first protection state in a protection state byte of an implementation use volume descriptor. After the first protection state is set for the optical disc media, the protection state byte is written with a second protection state. The method also includes writing files which are configured to inherit the second protection state written to the protection state byte after the files are written to the optical disc media. Once the files are written to the optical disc, the protection state byte is written with a third protection state which may be replaced by the first protection state. The third protection state is replaced with the first protection state by writing the protection state byte with the first protection state after the protection state byte is written with the third protection state.
In still a further embodiment, a computer implemented method for protecting data written to optical disc media is disclosed. The method includes first formatting the optical disc to have a first protection state. Once the optical disc is formatted, the method determines if a change in the first protection state is requested. If the change in the first protection state is requested, the first protection state is changed to a second protection state. After the optical disc is changed to the second protection state, the method determines if a change in the second protection state is requested. If the change in the second protection state is requested, the second protection state is changed to a third protection state. The method also determines if a change in the third protection state is requested. If the change in the third protection state is requested, the method changes the third protection state to the first protection state without switching to the second protection state.
The many advantages of the present invention should be recognized. The present invention allows users to switch between different protection states of an optical disc. A user may switch from a hard write protection state for an optical disc to a no protection state. Also, the present invention provides protection of a file immediately after the file is closed.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.